When I had dark brown hair it was pretty easy to find synthetic hairpieces to match. But that changed after I bleached my hair. It was blonde for a minute, then I let my silver roots grow in and tried out different pastel colors.

It was impossible to find fake hair in the right color. I also didn’t want to buy a different piece every time I changed my hair color.

Through trial and error I discovered I could tone synthetic hair using temporary rinses or certain semipermanent hair dyes. Because the color is temporary I could get by with one or two hairpieces and change the color whenever I wanted.

Buying synthetic hairpieces

The first thing I did was to pick up a couple of hairpieces in a light silver shade (from Vanessa Grey and Christie Brinkley).

I like the versatility of these because if I’m having a bad hair day, I can just make a quick updo. Or I can pull my hair half up and make a cute little poof on the top.

Toning fake hair to match blonde, silver or pastel hair

When you’re toning fake hair, it doesn’t have to be a perfect match. It just needs blend because your own hair will be incorporated into the look.

You can do color all over or just put in a few streaks. Lately I’ve been adding multicolored streaks to my hairpieces because I’m often changing the pastel colors in my hair.

I’ve found that the best temporary or semipermanent dyes to use are the ones that are very thin and runny. Roux Fanci Full rinse (for blonde or silver hair), diluted gentian violet (for lavender hair) and Adore Creative semipermanent dye (for pastel colors) are the best. These work because you have to leave the color on the hair without washing it out.

Thick dye like Arctic Fox, which I love for my own hair, doesn’t work because if you don’t wash it out, the piece ends up sticky and it doesn’t look good. And if you wash it out, the color will go with it.

The colors of Roux Fanci Full rinse I used for my blonde hair were Spun Sand and Hidden Honey. I mixed them together to get the right shade.

The color I used to match my silver hair was True Steel.

Follow these steps to tone your synthetic hair:

Put the Fanci Full rinse in an old plastic container.

Swish the synthetic hair around until it’s completely saturated.

Squeeze out the excess and let it air dry for a couple of days.

Before (silver)

During toning

After toning (blonde)

Whenever you decide to change colors, simply wash it out with a little soap and water.

Using a gentian violet rinse to tone fake hair (for lavender hair)

Gentian violet is an old-time antiseptic. Its bright purple color is a dupe for Manic Panic Ultraviolet. Unlike Manic Panic it’s very cheap, only around $4 a bottle. And because you only need three or four drops, one little bottle will last forever. I’m still using mine.

Follow these steps for toning with the gentian violet rinse:

Important: Make sure you wear gloves when handling this and cover the working area. Even a tiny little speck of this stuff will stain your sink, your hands, your walls. Most times it can be removed with alcohol though.

Put water in an old plastic container and add a few drops of gentian violet until you get the right shade. A little experimentation is needed here.

Saturate the hairpiece in the solution.

Squeeze it out and let dry for a couple of days.

Lavender tint solution

After toning (lavender)

Note: the color does fade over time, just as it does on human hair.

Using Adore Creative Dye to tone fake hair (for pastel hair)

Adore dye can be used straight out of the bottle. The procedure is a little different though. I found it best to rub a small amount of dye into the hair with your fingers. Wear gloves! You can put in streaks or tone the whole thing.